ACCUSED DRUG DEALER TO REMAIN IN JAIL

Drew Penner, Reporter

A 23-year-old San Jose man accused of selling fentanyl-laced pills to Los Gatos High School students who overdosed has lost another attempt at pretrial release.

Simon Jose Armendariz was charged with four felony Health and Safety Code violations of furnishing a controlled substance to a minor (carries a punishment of 3-9 years in state prison), a Penal Code felony for ammunition possession after a prior felony strike (penalty is up to three years in state prison) and a Health and Safety Code misdemeanor of fentanyl possession (penalty of up to a year in jail).

He was arraigned in December and lost his initial bail bid, Dec. 22.

On Jan. 23, Armendariz’s public defender took another shot at getting him out, arguing that an ankle monitor, and other factors, would be enough to keep tabs on the man until he gets his day in court.

Deputy District Attorney Eunice Lee, with Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office’s Major Crimes & Drug Trafficking Unit, appeared in-person to battle against the move.

From her perspective, letting Armendariz out wouldn’t be appropriate, given Silicon Valley is in the midst of a major fentanyl crisis.

“I think we all understand how deadly fentanyl can be,” she said. “I think we now understand that this can affect people from all walks of life.

“We’re seeing this frightening effect on our children.”

After a long hearing, Lee recalled, the court agreed with her position and denied the accused dealer bail again.

“I think the judge was convinced by the evidence,” she said. “There is not sufficient means to protect the public

(if he were to be released).”

That’s because it’s so easy to sell toxic drugs using digital tools these days, she says.

“He can sling stuff from everywhere,” Lee said. “He can make transactions online.”

Less than 10 Santa Clara County deaths were attributed to fentanyl in 2015. But that number has increased more than 10-fold, a painful issue that’s the subject of a feature article in Metro Silicon Valley, this week.

The investigation into Armendariz began after a 15-year-old girl overdosed on a Percocet pill containing fentanyl in a bathroom at a Narcotics Anonymous meeting.

At least four minors are known to have been injured by his actions, according to the District Attorney’s office.

District Attorney Jeff Rosen has taken pains to cast the prosecution not as a prong of the reviled War on Drugs, but as a sensible response to a public health crisis.

In September, the Board of Supervisors voted to put $135,000 in state funds toward placing Narcan kits in high schools, which can temporarily reverse the effects of an overdose. Now, it’s expanding the drive to get the fentanyl antidote into middle schools.

Armendariz has a preliminary examination scheduled for Feb. 27 at 8:55am in Santa Clara County Superior Court, Department 26.